Communication systems are growing increasingly larger and more sophisticated. This growth includes a significant increase in the number of audio sources and destinations supported by a single communication system. Devices within the system that control or define such audio paths require access to a significant amount of system configuration data in order to facilitate timely, accurate, and efficient coupling of sources to destinations. To date this need has been readily accommodated by providing all such devices with a memory that includes all system configuration data for the system.
Now, however, as overall systems grow yet more complex and capable, a plurality of communication systems as characterized above may be combined as described in U.S. patent Ser. No. 07/509,915, entitled "A Communication System Network" and filed on Apr. 16, 1990, the contents of which are incorporated herein by this reference. By combining such systems, the number of audio sources and destinations significantly increases. This increase thereby further increases the problem of ensuring that devices within a particular system that require such information have ready access to the appropriate system configuration data.
One solution might be to follow the prior art approach, and simply provide each such device with a larger memory capable of retaining system configuration data for each system within the network. There are at least two problems with this approach. First, the provision of additional memory represents a significant cost, and raises other related difficulties as well. Second, intersystem data throughput would be significantly impacted if every device were free to independently communicate with all other devices at all times in order to assure that its stored system configuration data was current and complete.
Accordingly, a need exists for a method and apparatus that will substantially ensure that adequate system configuration data is provided to devices that require it, without presenting excess requirements for memory and without presenting an undue burden to data throughput capabilities.